Forever
by Subject 0
Summary: Thane promised he'd be with her forever. But just how long is it until forever fades? Two one-shots with a twist.
1. Chapter 1

This story was inspired by Thane's letter in the Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC. Hope you enjoy.

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><p>| <strong>Forever <strong>|

"Thane…" Shepard sighed, her voice hardly rising above a whisper. Her fingers coursed along the curve of his bare back, stopping short of his lumbar.

"Be soft…" he hushed passionately, his shoulders swaying as he cradled her in his embrace. He backed his head until his eyes met with hers. He stared longingly into her essence, her soul. He smoothly ran his digits through her streaks of her auburn red hair, his hand eventually settling on her warm cheek. He leaned forward and stole a kiss from her lips, a somber smile breaking his typically blank countenance. "Let our actions alone speak for us tonight, siha. Let them be our words, our thoughts…" One last look into her cerulean blues calmed the storm of his impetuous heart.

She illuminated the darkness of his twilight hours. The brevity of his life waned with each of his breaths, yet she filled him with the hope to endeavor. Her love subdued the suffering that afflicted him like a poison, if only for a few moments. But in the end, she would live, and he would die.

He _was_ afraid of death.

Yet when he was with her, all his troubles were swept aside.

His only thoughts were of her.

Thane slowly placed her onto the bed. He thatched himself over her and gently caressed her shoulders, dipping his head down to lay a vertical path of kisses along her neck. His breaths grew deeper with anticipation.

A strangled cry of pleasure escaped her lips, her fingers twining tightly around the silken duvet cover.

Thane silenced her quickly. He pushed his lips tenderly against hers, feeling her muscles contract from the sudden oral embrace. He lightly squeezed her arms to let her know it was alright. She mumbled a few incoherent words, her voice dying a shallow whisper. Her body relaxed and she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.

Thane twisted his tongue against hers, absorbing the sweet scent of her breath. It was like blades of grass freshly cut, like autumn leaves that had just started to fall.

Shepard's tongue twitched. Her eyelids felt so heavy, like she was being wisped into a state of ecstasy. She moaned and arched her back forwards, her taut stomach pushing against his. An intense warmth flushed over her cheeks, reddening them into a rosy blush. She wished it could have been like this forever. She wished that he could be with her forever. But a part of her knew the concision of his life. A part of her wanted to forget all that.

Their lips parted, and for a moment, they were silent.

"Thane?" she began after they broke the intimacy, her voice coated with worry.

"What is it, siha?" he cooed, grooving his thin brows.

"You'll be with me until the end?"

"Of course I will. I wouldn't think of abandoning you," he replied decisively. Thane descended for a second kiss, but was stopped short when Shepard turned her face to the side. He repealed a troubled expression, the side of his hand smoothing down her cheek. "But that is not what ails you, is it?" He paused and softly continued, "Are you worried of how much time I have left in this life?"

She hesitantly turned her head back to face him, her wrinkled complexion filled with distraught. "I don't want you to go. I don't want you to die."

He gave her a comforting hug and whispered, "All life must end one day. I must return to the cycle that brought me life. I am ready for death."

"But I'm not," Shepard protested roughly, a tight mass developing in her throat. She could feel her own voice breaking as she replied, "Thane, I'm scared. Every day I worry that it might be the last time I'll ever see you. When I go to sleep, I'm afraid that you won't be there when I get up."

"Siha, I will _always _be there for you. Even if I pass, I will live in your spirit, in your memories."

"But just remembering you won't let me _be _with you!" she whispered hotly, her eyes fogging with tears. "I won't be able to _speak _with you, or _touch _you… or _love _you." She planted her chin onto his shoulder, her arms coiling around his back. A trickle of hot tears glided down her countenance.

"We all must let go of the things we hold dear when the time comes…" A pause. "But that time isn't now." He beamed a warm smile, his digits moving to wipe the droplets of water flowing down her downy cheeks. He breathed, "For now, you have me, and I have you. _Live_ in this moment. _Be _in this moment. _Love _in this moment, and cherish it for the rest of your days. Some things only happen once, and we must make the most of them."

"Thane, I can't just think…"

"No. Do not think," he silenced, his breath beating against the shell of her ear. "_Feel_."

She found no words to counter him. Her doubts weren't quelled, but she could put them aside for one night. For _this _night. She kissed him tenderly on the lips and smiled.

"I love you… Thane…"

"I love you too, siha… Shepard... And I will be here for you."

"_Forever."_

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><p>His body was so warm that night.<p>

But the next morning, it was so cold.


	2. Chapter 2

| **Forever **|

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><p>"Thane…" Shepard sighed, her voice hardly rising above a whisper.<p>

"Be soft, siha…" he hushed pleadingly, his shoulders swaying as he cradled her in his amorous embrace. He backed his head until his eyes met with hers. He stared longingly into her essence, her soul. He smoothly ran his digits through the streaks of her raven black hair, his hand eventually settling on her warm cheek. A forced smile broke his uneasy countenance. "Do not speak. Rest."

Her hand settled on the grievous wound at her side. "Ah… it's not that bad, right?" She felt the warmth of her blood trickling between the gaps of her fingers. She lowered her gaze.

He nervously grooved his brows and lifted her chin up so that she would not spy the injury. He stared into her cerulean blues and kissed her tenderly on the forehead. "No, it is only a small wound," he lied. "Nothing that cannot be healed."

"That's good," she whispered, leaning her head back against the wall. "I didn't want to… ah…" She tightened her eyes and bit onto her bottom lip, suppressing the overwhelming sensation of pain. "I didn't want to leave you. Not yet…" she whispered softly. "We still have so much to do…"

He felt his chest tighten. "Yes… so much to do…"

She illuminated the darkness of his twilight hours. The brevity of his life waned with each of his breaths, yet she filled him with the hope to endeavor. Her love subdued the suffering that afflicted him like a poison, if only for a few moments. He knew that his days were numbered, that they were fleeting, and he knew that their time together would eventually end…

But for it to end like this? For her to die before him? Thane's gut sank with guilt, with remorse. He always thought that he would be the first to go, that he would be the one to leave. He never dreamt that she would die before him… he never imagined it could happen. He suddenly felt something drop from his eyes. He put a hand to his cheek. Water? No, tears. He was crying. He furrowed his brows and bit onto his bottom lip, throwing his fist wildly into the wall. "I'm… I'm ashamed…"

Shepard resisted the urge to fall asleep, sliding her body up the wall so that her back was leveled. "What wrong, Thane?" she asked, putting her hand to his cheek. She rubbed away the lines of tears with her thumb, feigning a weak smile as she looked at him with her weary eyes.

He turned his face away and averted his gaze to the ground. "… I'm ashamed. I was prepared for the moment when my body's breath faded, but now I've let myself become so… vulnerable to my feelings. I've found happiness again; I've found it with _you…_" His voice softened to a murmur. "And I'm afraid. I'm afraid of losing it again… I'm afraid of losing _you._"

She chuckled and shook her head. "There's nothing to be ashamed of, Thane. You've been through so much, you've felt so much pain… it's only natural that you want to be rid of it. I'm just happy that I could help you through some of it before I…" She swallowed. The liveliness of her voice fell. "Before I…"

"Siha…"

Her eyes started to fill with tears, a forced smile still etched over her complexion. "Do you remember what I told you that night before we went through the Omega 4 Relay?" she asked quietly.

"I do, siha."

"I'm still making plans for our future. I finally have it all figured out. After this is all over… we'll settle down on Illium. I'll buy a house for the two of us on Nos Astra…"

"One that overlooks the sea…" Thane added, squeezing her hands gently.

"Hehe, so you do remember…" Shepard lightly laughed.

"Of course, siha. I would never forget," he cooed, brushing his lips against the lobe of her ear. "And as I recall, you said that we would have a number of green children…"

"Yeah, that's right."

"And when we grew old, we would sit together by the beach and watch the sun set. We would recollect the memories of our past, of the foolish things we had done when we were younger…" Thane drew his head back and stared for a moment into her limpid blues. He leaned forward and softly pressed his lips against hers, breaking the intimacy to finish. "And I would tell you that you were the world to me."

She smiled and rung her arms around his neck, bringing his face close to hers. She closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against his. "I love you… Thane…"

He felt hot tears leaking, but he merely shut his eyes. "I… love you too, my siha… my Shepard... I will be here for you."

"_Forever."_

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><p>He kissed her cheek with his warm lips.<p>

But she was already cold.


End file.
